The present invention relates to a buckle or latch for securing a lid to an open topped container. The invention has particular application to a buckle utilized for securing a lid to the top of the tank of a tank type vacuum cleaner.
Various lid buckles are known including a toggle type buckle arrangement wherein the buckle, pivotally supported on the tank, may engage a projecting portion or rim of the lid and lock the same in place upon closure of the toggle. Other types of buckles are latched to the lid in various ways.
In known buckles using a swiveling or pivoting latch element, the mechanical strain involved in holding the lid to the container is taken up by the means by which the buckle is movably attached to the container, i.e. the means on which the buckle swivels, e.g. a hinge pin of the buckle or latch. Repeated application of force tending to separate the lid from the tank is transmitted to the swivel means or hinge pin, eventually deforming the hinge pin or damaging the swivel means, which adversely affects the operation of the buckle.